Tale of a Mew: Explorers of Avalon
by Myu98
Summary: When mysterious Pokémon attack villages, a new Pokémon called Myu takes it upon himself to discover why, and stop their mysterious leader before he can destroy their world.
1. Chapter 1 - Arrival

**Tale of a Mew**

Avalon, an island continent, is home to creatures with extraordinary abilities. These creatures call themselves Pokémon. They exist in two different types: the Wild Pokémon, who roam the forests and wilderness, always on the hunt, and the Sapient Pokémon, who live simple village lives. Twelve villages are spread throughout Avalon, each one home to hundreds of Pokémon. The villages peacefully coexist with each other, working together to help each other.

But Avalon is far from peaceful. Strange Pokémon, more savage and dangerous than ever, have been attacking the villages. They are called Shadows, for only in darkness do they appear. The Shadows are the most powerful thing on Avalon. No one has beaten one, until now…

* * *

"Hello? Are you okay?"

He could hear a female voice, and it was concerned. He opened his eyes to see who it was, but his vision was clouded. All he could see was white. Slowly, colors began to appear, his vision sharpening. Eventually, his vision cleared, and he could see the speaker. First thing he could see was aquamarine hair, around two purple eyes set in a white face. Two orange horns shaped like hairpins were on the top of her head. She smiled when she saw him looking at her.

"Oh good, you're not dead," she said. She straightened herself up and he could see her body.

He could see her white upper body with two thin arms which ended in two digits, three ruffles on each hip and thin aquamarine legs. She was standing on the tips of her feet and seemed to be balanced quite well. He then realized that she was a Shiny Kirlia.

"Are you hurt?" the Kirlia asked.

He pushed himself up so he was sitting, only now realizing that he had been laying down. He brought his arm up to his head, feeling a headache that he needed to soothe. When he did, something felt wrong. He looked at his arm and realized that it was shorter, and covered in fine blue fur. His arm ended in a three digit paw. He looked at the rest of himself and saw his whole body was different.

His body was tear-shaped, and he saw both his arms were short with three-digit paws, and two short legs with ridiculously long feet with three digits each. He felt his head and found it was about as large as his body, mostly oval-shaped, with two triangular ears, and a short nub which seemed to be a nose on the front. He felt something behind him and saw a tail which was twice as long as himself and which had an oval-shaped end. His whole body was covered in fine blue fur. He subconsciously recognizes his species as a Mew and he was evidently Shiny. He saw on his right arm a gold band with a small purple gem on the top.

"No," was his response to the Kirlia.

"What's your name? And what are you? I've never seen a Pokémon like you before," the Kirlia asked again.

"You haven't told me your name. Why should I tell you mine?" the Mew asked.

"Well, then, my name is Bella," she said with a happy tone.

"My name is…" he paused to think, "Myu."

"Well, Myu, nice to meet you," she said while holding out her hand. After a moment of contemplation, Myu grabbed her hand with his paw and shook it.

"Nice to meet you too," Myu said back.

"So what were you doing lying on the beach?" Bella asked once they were done.

Myu looked around and sure enough, they were on a beach, the ocean just behind him. "I don't know," was his response.

"You don't know? How can you not know? If I washed up on a beach, I think I would know what happened," she asked.

"I don't know how I even got in the water," Myu responded.

"Did you hit your head or something?" Bella asked.

"Well, I do have a headache."

"Then let's get you to my village so the healer can help. It's not far." She motioned for him to follow. He tried standing up, but almost immediately fell back. Bella patiently waited for him to get up, but she could see he was struggling. "You need help?"

"No, I can do it," Myu replied, wanting to try something else. Instead of standing up on his whole foot, he tried standing on the balls of his feet. Sure enough, he found that standing position easy. His tail whipped around behind him, trying to help him balance, before it settled on an S-shaped orientation.

Seeing that he was good, Bella stated walking, heading for the grassy area. Myu followed, a little unsteady on his feet, but he eventually managed to get the hang of it.

They walked away from the beach and onto a grassy hill. Once they reached the top, Myu saw a village not too far away. Bella motioned for him to follow. Myu followed down the hill, reaching the village. It was mostly dirt ground, with grassy patches. There were wooden stands off to his left, and four arenas outlined in white to his right. He followed Bella through the village taking a left turn to several dome-shaped wooden huts. They walked through them until they reached one hut. Bella knocked on the door, and an aged Audino answered.

"Hello, Bella. What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Hi, Lapin. I've got someone here who needs to be looked at," Bella replied, gesturing to Myu. He waved his paw at the Audino, who gave a smile in return.

"Well, then, come in," she said, opening the door the rest of the way. Bella and Myu entered. Myu saw the hut was mostly filled with various medicines and books. "Sit on the table and I'll be right back. I need to consult my species book to know what I'm treating." Lapin left for a while, but came back with a rather old looking book. "Let's see, what species are you?" she asked, flipping through the pages.

"I'm a Mew," Myu answered.

"Mew, Mew, Mew," Lapin repeated as she searched through the pages. "Let's see… Metang… Metapod… Mienfoo… hmm, don't see a Mew here." She continued looking through the pages, thinking she overlooked it, but came up empty. "Huh. Well, son, I don't think your species is in my book, which is a first."

"So, what are you going to do?" Bella asked.

"Go with what I can figure out. You seem to be related to the Meowth somewhat, so I'll go with that for treatment." She grabbed the feelers on her ears and placed them on Myu's chest. "So, what precisely is wrong with you?"

"I have a slight headache," Myu answered.

"He said he also can't remember what happened to him to get him to where I found him," Bella said.

"I'll check your head then," Lapin said, moving her feelers to Myu's head. She felt around, but couldn't sense anything wrong. "Well, as far as I can tell, there's nothing wrong. I want to do a physical check-up just to be sure I'm not missing something." She placed her feelers back on Myu's chest. "Breathe deeply for me." Myu complied. She listened where she assumed his lungs were. She couldn't tell if anything was wrong. She then moved them to where she thought his heart would be. She could hear it beating, though it was going really fast. Almost twice as fast as the average heartbeat. But his heart sounded strong, so, nothing wrong there. "Well, as far as I can tell, you're perfectly healthy. But I want to do another checkup in a couple days just to be sure." She took her feelers off him. "You may go now. That's all I can do."

Myu hopped off the table and Bella gestured for him to follow. They walked out of the hut and Bella asked what Myu was planning to do.

"I don't know to be honest. I don't know where my home is now, so I could be here a while."

"Well, then, let's arrange a place for you to stay. Come on!" Bella took off to a larger hut, Myu trying to keep up. Bella knocked on the door, and just as Myu caught up, the door opened. Standing in the doorway was a Gardevoir.

"What is it Bella?" she asked.

"Hi, mom," Bella started. "This is Myu," she gestured to the Mew, "and he needs a place to stay for the time being."

"Well, I'll see what I can do for him. In the meantime, you could take him on a tour of the village," the Gardevoir said. She bent down so she was more level with the small Pokémon. "My name is Devoir, and I'm the Chieftess of Crimson Village. It's nice to meet you." She extended her hand, which Myu took.

"Nice to meet you, too," Myu said. Devoir turned around and closed her hut door, before walking off to make arrangements for Myu.

"Come on Myu, I'll show you around." Bella took Myu's paw and pulled him to the north part of the village. There was a grassy area with flowers and orchards. "This is where we grow our berries and other types of fruit." She picked an Oran Berry and handed it to Myu. He took the fruit and bit into it. It wasn't all that bad. He continued to eat the fruit as he followed Bella. Eventually they found a Buneary, who Bella greeted. "Hi, Mimi. How's the planting going?"

The Buneary turned around and saw Bella, along with her companion. "It's going fine. We're planting a few more berry trees so they'll be ready for the harvest. We're also planting a few new flowers for the year," she said. "So, who's he?" gesturing to Myu.

"This is Myu. He's going to be staying in the village for a while, so I'm showing him around," Bella answered.

"Well, then, hi. I'm Mimi," she said while holding out her paw for greeting. Myu extended one of his paws, only then realizing he was holding the berry in it, so he switched paws.

"Well, hi to you too. So, you grow berries here for food?"

"Yeah. Don't they do that everywhere?" she asked. She turned around and resumed her planting, digging out a hole with her paws, then placing the seeds in the hole. She covered them back up with the dirt then patted the mound down.

"Moving on," Bella said while taking Myu's free paw, leading him to the south. She led him to a really large wooden dome. "This is our gathering hall, where we hold village meetings or use as an emergency shelter."

"Smart," Myu said while taking another bite of the berry.

"And over there are our battle arenas, where we practice our moves and fighting," Bella said, pointing to the white outlines that vaguely resembled rectangular arenas, split by a white line across the middle of each. "Oh, looks like there are two fighters practicing right now." She walked to the nearest arena with Myu following. He saw a Riolu, which was a small blue, male, bipedal canine, with black appendages on either side of his head, and a Dratini, which was a long, female, blue serpent, with a white underside and wing-like ears.

"Hi, Lykos. Hi, Ryu," Bella greeted the two combatants. They stopped their battle to look at her.

"Hi, Bella," the Riolu greeted. "Who's the small cat?"

Myu noticed that the Riolu's voice was rather high pitched, and guessed that he was young.

"This is Myu. He's going to be staying with the village for a while," Bella said.

"Well, hi. I'm Lykos. Nice to meet you!" the Riolu said energetically. Myu definitely knew now that he was a kid. The Dratini slithered up and waved her tail at Myu.

"Hi. I'm Ryu," she said rather quietly. Myu nodded to her.

"Ryu is a really powerful Dratini, Myu," Bella told the Mew. "She's one of the strongest fighters here, save my mom and some of the other adults."

"And me," said a rather strange voice. Bella flinched and Myu got the distinct impression that her happy mood had left her. She turned around to face an eel-like creature with a sucking mouth, two clawed arms, and a long, tentacle-like appendage extending from the back of his head. It was an Eelecktross.

"Hi, Dominus," Bella greeted with a forced smile, though Dominus didn't seem to know.

"Check it out. I evolved," he said. "Which means you need to evolve soon, too." He glanced at Myu and his look turned sour. "Who's the kitty?"

"This is Myu," Bella explained. "He's going to be staying in our village for the time being."

"Well, tell him to watch where he steps. I'm sure there are some people who would love to beat up a weakling like him," Dominus said. He flew off, leaving an irritated Mew behind.

"So, who's the jerk?" Myu asked.

"He's Dominus, and he's my future mate," Bella explained, her tone telling Myu that she wasn't excited about that.

Myu did a double take, confused. "Him?" he tried to clarify.

"Yes," Bella confirmed.

"What was that word you used to describe him?" Lykos asked Myu.

"Jerk," Myu said.

"I don't know why, but that makes me want to laugh," Lykos said, trying to suppress a giggle.

"Don't know what a 'jerk' is, but I think that's accurate," Ryu said. "He's not very nice."

"Moving on," Bella said. "What should I show next?"

Myu's stomach growled, giving Bella a suggestion. "I guess we'll go eat." She grabbed Myu's paw again and started running off. She led him west, to a wooden structure with a leafy roof. A post on either end kept it up, with a solid wood wall holding up the south part. Myu could see tables underneath and around the place, indicating it was a diner of sorts. She led him to the wall, where there was a counter made of the same wood. A rotund bovine Pokémon, with mostly pink fur, black angular markings along her back, a black hood-like marking surrounding its face and a prominent yellow udder with pink teats was there. She was a Miltank, and she came up to attend to the customers.

"Hello, Bella, who's this?" she asked politely.

"Hi, Friesian. This is Myu, and he's going to be staying with us for a while," Bella said, introducing the Miltank to Myu.

"Well, hello sweetie. I'll give you two a table," she said, walking out from behind the counter, leading them to one of the tables. "What can I get you to drink?" she asked after they sat down.

"I'll have an Oran Berry drink," Bella said. "Get one for Myu, too."

"And to eat?" Friesian asked.

"I'll have a Pecha Poffin, and get one for Myu too," Bella requested.

"Okay. I'll be back with your drinks first," Friesian said, walking off.

"So, how good is the food here?" Myu asked.

"It's great," Bella answered. "Not as good as the food in Amazon Village, but still very good."

"So, Dominus is your future mate," Myu wondered. "I'm curious. Why would you want to be married to someone like that?" When he got a blank expression from Bella, he corrected his sentence. "Why would you want to be his mate?"

"It…wasn't exactly my choice. It's something my mom arranged for me when we were just kids," Bella explained.

"And you're going along with it?" Myu asked, finding it strange.

"What's the alternative?"

"Maybe ask your mom if you could have someone else," Myu stated. "He just doesn't seem like the kind of guy you should spend your life with."

"I don't think that's possible Myu, and why does it sound like you're against that?" Bella asked.

"Because my people don't do that, not anymore. We don't force people to fall in love. Everyone gets to choose who they fall for," Myu explained. "I was raised on that, and I believe in that wholeheartedly."

"Not everyone gets that choice."

"Well, everyone should."

Friesian returned with their drink, which came in wooden cups. "Here's your drinks. Your Poffins will be out in a minute." She left to oversee the Poffins.

"Your people seem to have unique customs and views," Bella said. "Where did you say you were from again?"

"A faraway land," Myu answered. "You probably haven't heard of it."

"I've heard of all sorts of places all across Avalon. None of them have your customs," Bella rebutted.

"Avalon?" Myu asked.

"That's the name of the land? What do you call it?"

"Never heard of Avalon. Anything beyond it?"

"Nope. Just an endless ocean. There is nothing beyond Avalon."

Myu took a moment to think before forming an answer. "I wouldn't be so sure. I don't come from anywhere on Avalon."

"Wait. You mean, you come from beyond the ocean? I didn't think there was anything out there." Bella could hardly believe her ears. She has never heard of anything beyond Avalon.

"Here are your Poffins," Friesian said as she came back with two pink oval-shaped buns.

"Thanks," Myu said as he took one.

"How did you get across the ocean anyway?" Bella asked.

"Not sure. Right now, I'm hungry," Myu said, taking a bite of the Poffin. Bella got the idea and began eating. Myu like the flavor of the Poffin. He didn't notice at first as his tail wagged behind him. He eventually noticed, but paid it no mind; he was enjoying this meal.

Unfortunately, due to the length of his tail, it wagged in completely random directions, and it accidently slapped an unsuspecting Squirtle that was passing by, sending him to the ground face first, and causing the papers he was carrying to go flying. Myu felt the sensation on his tail, and heard the Squirtle's cry when his tail slapped the back of his head. He looked down and saw the Squirtle splayed on the floor.

"Oops, sorry," Myu said after swallowing his bite. He hopped down and tried to help the Squirtle get his papers back together. He noticed on one of the papers there were notes pertaining to how the orbit of a moon – probably this planet's moon – could be affecting the tides. "Huh, impressive."

"Uh, it's not really," the Squirtle said, taking the paper back. "I just noticed one day that the tides always seem to be higher when the moon is overhead, but I can never figure out why the tides rise when the moon isn't even in the sky. No one believes that there could even be a correlation between the moon and the rising of the tides."

"Well, actually, there is," Myu said, resuming picking up the papers. "The moon's gravitational force pulls on the ocean, causing the water level to rise in the process, and if you look at the times for the other tide, you'll notice that it's the exact opposite for the first one."

The Squirtle took a look at his papers and reviewed some of the times he took down for high tide and saw Myu was right. "Huh, you're right. I never thought of it like that." He put the paper back and extended his hand. "I'm Zeni." Myu took his hand and shook it for a few seconds before Zeni took a closer look at Myu's arms. "Your arms are rather short."

"Yeah, I know," Myu said, returning his paw to his side.

"You're the first one who hasn't completely rejected my tidal theory. What did you say caused it? The moon's 'grabitational' force?"

Myu giggled at Zeni's goof before correcting him. "'Gravitational', and yes."

"You're not seriously buying that, are you Myu?" Bella asked, skeptical.

"It's true. My people have proved the same thing," Myu defended.

"If they have, then you must believe in the heliocentric model of our solar system!" Zeni said, excited.

"Yes, we do. We know that the planet actually _revolves_ around our sun, and our world actually _rotates_ on an invisible axis, with the moon being the only thing rotating around it."

"How could you figure that out?"

"By observing the orbit paths of the planets in the heavens. They rotate around the sun in circular orbits like our world."

"Finally. Someone who speaks Common!" Zeni said, overjoyed.

"Is that what just happened?" Bella muttered.

"While I would love to continue this, I need to get back to the ocean to make more observations," Zeni said, preparing to leave. "Oh, wait." He stopped and face Myu. "I never did get your name."

"It's Myu."

"Myu, great to meet you. Got to go!" Zeni took off as fast as he could.

"You don't really buy that 'sun is the center of our solar system garbage', do you?" Bella asked.

"I do actually," Myu said. Further conversation was cut off when a large explosion shook the ground. "What was that?" Myu asked.

"Nothing good," Bella said. They ran out to find a pillar of smoke coming from the huts.

"What's going on?" Myu asked as they ran to the huts.

"Run! Shadow attacking!" one of the Pokémon said as it ran by.

"What's a Shadow?" Myu asked. He heard a roar and a jet of flame shoot over head. Myu found the source. A Charizard.

"That!" Bella said, turning around to run. Myu was puzzled as to why this Charizard was attacking, but when the Charizard saw him, it fired a Flamethrower, intending to burn Myu.

Myu thrust his arms up in a foolish attempt to protect himself, but when he did, sand was pulled from the ground and crossed in front of him, creating a shield that blocked the fire. Myu looked up when he didn't feel the fire burning him to see the sandy shield. "Did I do that?" Myu wondered, surprised. Before he could ponder on how he did that, the Charizard shot to the ground and slammed his feet down, creating an Earthquake attack that shook Myu off balance. He jumped to the side to avoid the rapidly advancing crack. "Okay, that could have been bad."

Dominus flew in along with several other Pokémon who looked ready for combat. "Sit back little kitty and let the big boys handle this," Dominus told Myu. He rushed forward with the other Pokémon, intending to attack, but with a flap of its great wings, the Charizard sent all of his attackers back.

"Myu!" Myu turned his head in the direction of the voice, and saw Devoir running over, Bella nearby but cowering behind her mother. "What are you still doing here? It's not safe."

"I didn't exactly have enough time to get away," Myu stated. "Care to explain what exactly Dominus is doing?" Myu gestured to the Eelektross, who was failing to repeal the Charizard.

"He's fighting the Shadow. We have to get rid of it before it destroys our village," Devoir explained.

"What are 'Shadows' exactly?" Myu asked.

"'Shadows' are Pokémon that actually attack us. While Wild Pokémon leave us alone unless provoked, Shadows attack for no reason," Devoir explained.

Dominus was currently facing the Shadow Charizard, ready for anything. The Charizard stomped the ground, sending an Earthquake at Dominus, but the Earthquake passed harmlessly under the flying eel. "Ha! Ground-type moves have no effect on me! I can fly over anything you send at…" The Charizard spat a Flamethrower at Dominus, sending the electric eel flying, crashing into a hut.

"Maybe next time he should move instead of talk," Myu joked, which Bella laughed at. Devoir scolded her daughter with a look, and the Shiny Kirlia straightened herself.

"Help!" Myu finally got up and saw that Lykos and Mimi were surrounded by fire. He ran to help them, ignoring the protests of the Chieftess as he did so. He rolled to avoid a Flamethrower from the Charizard as he ran, and stopped just beyond the ring of fire surrounding the Riolu and Buneary. He grabbed as much sand as he could and threw it on the fire, creating an opening big enough for the two kids to get through. The Shadow Charizard however stood in their path. It prepared to fire a Flamethrower, but a Water Gun broke his concentration.

The Charizard turned and saw Zeni standing there, but he was now shaking with fear. "Okay, didn't think that through!" He took off as the Charizard flew after him.

"Nothing anyone is doing is having an effect!" Lykos shouted. Myu saw several Pokémon fire off defensive moves, but they all missed as the Charizard altered its flight to avoid the attacks.

"We need to bring it down to the ground and keep it there," Myu thought out loud.

"How?" Mimi asked. Myu looked around and saw a Cubone that was hiding behind a rock. He ran over and got the Pokémon's attention.

"Hey, do you know Smack Down?"

"Yeah, but I can't hit that Charizard from down here!" the Cubone whined. Myu saw a Machoke and walked up to it.

"Hey, how's your throwing arm?"

The Shadow Charizard continued to unleash Flamethrower after Flamethrower on the huts, destroying several. He paid no mind to the screams around him. Destroying the village was the only thing that mattered to him.

"SMACK DOWN!" The Shadow Charizard heard the shout and turned his head to see a Cubone flying towards his right wing with its bone club raised. He couldn't react in time as the Cubone smashed the bone club into the wing, sending the Shadow Charizard down to the ground. The Cubone was caught by Devoir before he collided with the ground.

The Shadow Charizard got up and prepared to take off, but his right wing was extremely stiff. He saw a layer of rocks now covered it. He still tried to take off, and Myu realized it was only a matter of time before he got off the ground.

"We need to prevent him from flying off," he said. He turned to a Vaporeon. "Do you know any Ice-type moves that can freeze?"

"I know Aurora Beam, but it will take time with this much fire," he answered.

"Zeni!" Myu shouted, getting the Squirtle's attention. He ran over to see what was needed.

"What is it?"

"Use Water Gun on the Charizard's wing so Aurora Beam can freeze it faster," Myu ordered.

"I see," Zeni said as he took aim. He fired off a pressurized blast of water at the Shadow Charizard's wing, which was frozen by a multi-colored beam of freezing energy from the Vaporeon. In a few seconds, the Shadow Charizard's wing was completely frozen, preventing him from taking off at all.

"Now he should be an easier target," Myu said. Zeni and the Vaporeon proceeded to fire Water Guns at the Shadow Charizard, but he sent out a Flamethrower which vaporized the water. "Now we need a way around that." As he was coming up with a solution, the Charizard fired a Solar Beam at the three Pokémon there. Myu shoved Zeni out of the way, but the Vaporeon was unfortunate enough to get hit by the Solar Beam at full power, knocking him out.

"Any ideas?" Zeni asked.

"Three, so far," Myu answered.

"Three?" Zeni asked incredulously. Devoir fired a Shadow Ball at the Shadow Charizard, but he tore the attack apart with Dragon Pulse.

"I think I have a solution that could work," Myu said as he got up. "Zeni, do you know Water Pulse?"

"Yes, why?"

"On my mark, concentrate as much power as you can into it, then fire it into the air," Myu said as he ran off.

"What good will that do?" Zeni didn't get an answer as Myu ran up to Devoir.

"I don't suppose you'll mind if I give you a battle plan?" Myu asked.

"At this point? What do you have in mind?" she asked.

"I want you to fire a Shadow Ball at Zeni's Water Pulse when I say so. Can you do that?"

"Sure."

"Good." Myu turned so he was facing Zeni. "Now, Zeni!" he shouted.

Zeni put his hands to the side, concentrating as much power into making as big a water ball as he could. Once it was large enough, he fired it up into the air. Once Myu determined it was high enough, he told Devoir to fire her Shadow Ball. She shot it off, and it collided with the Water Pulse, shattering it and scattering water down, most of it concentrated on the Shadow Charizard.

The lizard roared in pain as it was pelted with several large drops of water.

"Now, we need a finishing move; something to knock it out," Myu said. "Or a combination of really powerful moves so it does take him out."

The Shadow Charizard started to flex its wings, trying to use them to take off. "Zeni, don't let it take off!" Myu shouted. Zeni fired an Ice Beam, coating the wings in a new layer of ice. Lykos and Mimi were running by when Myu stopped them. "Hey, do either of you know Quick Attack?"

"We both do, but why would you…" Lykos answered.

"I've got a plan to take him down, but I'm going to need the two of you as a distraction so he doesn't see the attack coming," Myu explained. "If the two of you go in a zig-zag pattern using Quick Attack, he won't be able to hit either of you."

"And what attack are you planning on doing?" Mimi asked.

"Devoir is going to use a Shadow Ball to hopefully knock out the Charizard," Myu said.

"I can help too," Bella added in. "I know a move that's super effective on this guy."

"Let me help too." Myu saw Ryu slither up. "I know Draco Meteor."

"Alright, three attacks should knock him out," Myu said, the plan made. "Lykos and Mimi, charge at him with Quick Attack." The pair shot off with silver streaks left behind as they ran at the Shadow Charizard, swerving as much as they could. The Shadow Charizard saw them, but got dizzy from trying to track them. "Alright, now the three of you charge your attacks, and fire them simultaneously." Devoir conjured a Shadow Ball between her hands, while Ryu focused her draconic energies into an orange sphere. Bella's body sparkled with electricity as she started charging an Electric-type move. Then, Devoir fired her Shadow Ball as Ryu fired the sphere, which split into several smaller streaks of orange power. Bella fired off her gathered electrical energies, using Thunderbolt.

The Shadow Charizard saw the attacks coming and prepared to counter with a Flamethrower, but Lykos and Mimi ran at him and used Quick Attack on the bottom of his jaw, sending the Flamethrower to the sky and exposing his chest. The three attacks collided with their target, creating a small explosion that engulfed the Shadow Charizard. When the smoke cleared, the Shadow Charizard fainted, falling to the ground.

Before they could celebrate, an eerie purple aura surrounded the Charizard, which proceeded to blast outward before dissipating.

"What was that?" Bella wondered. Devoir walked over to the knocked out Charizard, but when she got close she recognized him.

"Don?" she questioned. The Charizard hadn't been seen in days, and yet, here he was. The Charizard, now known as Don, opened his eyes.

"Ugh, what happened?" he asked as he sat up. "And why is there ice covering my wings?" he asked when he noticed his frozen wings.

"Wait. You don't know?" Devoir asked.

"Know what?" Don asked.

"Ahem, what's going on?" Myu asked as he and the others came up.

"This is Don, he's the Chief of Azure Village," Devoir introduced the Charizard. "He went missing a couple days ago."

"Wait, what? What happened to me?" Don asked.

"You were a Shadow and tried to destroy the village," Myu said bluntly.

"What? Did I hurt anyone?" Don asked, concerned.

"Just Dominus over there," Myu said, pointing to where the Eelektross was laying. He suddenly got up and sprang back into action.

"No one does that to me and gets away with it!" he exclaimed angrily. He saw them gathered around the Charizard and was confused. "What happened?"

"Turns out the Shadow Charizard is Don, and he's now back to normal," Bella explained.

"Oh. Well uh… you're welcome!" Dominus said, trying to take credit.

"What? You were unconscious the whole time!" Lykos emphasized. "Myu's the one who beat him," he said while patting the smaller Pokémon on the back.

"What!" Dominus exclaimed.

"I didn't beat him, you guys did," Myu said, motioning to the Pokémon that did the job.

"You came up with the plan that beat him!" Bella said. "And it was awesome!"

"That little runt did what!" Dominus shouted, glaring at the Mew.

"It's true, he was quite excellent," Devoir praised.

"Well, thanks for freeing me," Don said to the Mew. "What's your name?"

"Myu."

"Well, Myu, it's not everyday someone can coordinate an attack to take me down. For that, I'm impressed," Don praised. "So, where you from? I haven't seen you before."

"I'm currently staying here for the time being," Myu explained. "Oh, by the way, where am I staying?" Myu asked.

"In…" Devoir trailed off when she pointed to one of the destroyed huts.

Myu followed her gaze and saw the destroyed hut. "Oh, so, anyplace else?" Myu asked.

"I think Don destroyed all the spare huts we had," Devoir said as she looked around. "It's going to be a while before we can repair one of them."

"Sorry," the Charizard apologized.

"Aww, too bad," Dominus sarcastically said.

"So, where am I going to spend the night?" Myu asked, noting that the sky was darkening fast.

"He could stay with us!" As soon as the words left her mouth, Bella covered it with her hands. She didn't mean to blurt that out; it was just too exciting. Everyone turned to look at her with surprised looks. "Well, I mean, he could stay in my room," Bella explained, nervously twirling her hair.

"I don't want to be a burden," Myu said.

"You wouldn't be," Bella protested. "We could arrange something for you, I'm sure, and our hut is big enough that you would hardly take up any room." She looked to her mom, hoping Devoir would be okay with this. "Please, mom?" she almost begged.

"Well, I guess, but he cannot stay on your bed," Devoir told her daughter. "Don, it's too late for you to fly back, and you need to recover first. You can stay in our hut for the night."

"Thank you," Don said to Devoir.

"Hold on. Why should that little kitty stay in Bella's room?" Dominus demanded.

"He's the first person to defeat a Shadow, if indirectly, and deserves to stay with us," Devoir defended.

"Yes!" Bella leapt for joy. "Come on, Myu, I'll show you to your new home!" she said as she took his hand and lead him away.

Dominus watched them go, irritated that that little kitty got to sleep in Bella's room, which should be his honor. He could even see it in Bella's eyes; she liked him. He was going to have to keep a close eye on that cat from now on.

* * *

In a dark place, a figure walked up to a reflective pool. He waved a paw over the water, conjuring an image. It showed their latest Shadow, a Charizard, defeated. He scanned the area around the Charizard, and saw several young Pokémon standing victorious, but something seemed wrong. He focused on one of them, and saw a small blue feline Pokémon with a long tail. He leaned closer to the pool to get a better look. The water reflected his purple-crimson eyes, as he analyzed the image and realized what it was. _So, there is one left._

 **End of Chapter 1**

15


	2. Chapter 2 - Temple

**Tale of a Mew**

Bella led Myu to her hut. She opened the door and ran inside pulling him through the hut, until she came up to a door. She opened it and led Myu inside.

"This is my bedroom, and it's where you'll stay," Bella said. Myu looked around. It was virtually bare, except for a bed made of stacked leaves and a small pool. "I know it's not much, but I've got my own private room. I've only got the one bed but I can make something for you."

Bella ran over to her bed and pulled out a few leaves. She laid them down on the floor, making a makeshift mat for Myu to sleep on. "That's the best I can do, but if you are like other feline Pokémon I've seen, you prefer to sleep curled up. Most actually sleep on the floor, so you should be fine." She stretched and let out a yawn. "Well, it's late, and I need to go to sleep. So good night." She laid down on the leaves, resting her head on a pillow made from a brown pelt. She grabbed a blanket made from the same thing and covered herself with it.

Myu looked down at the little pallet of leaves, realizing that Bella was right. He laid down on the leaves and curled up, which felt rather natural, and his tail curled up around him. Due to its length, it curled completely around him with the end by his head. He pondered on all that had happened, until exhaustion overcame him and he fell asleep.

* * *

The morning light eventually awoke Myu from his sleep. He stirred on his small pile of leaves, eventually stretching himself to correct his back. He heard what sounded like water and turned his head to see Bella bathing in the pool. Near the edge, laying discarded, was her skirt and blue leggings. It took a second for this to register to Myu what that meant, and he quickly looked away from Bella.

Bella sensed Myu's embarrassment, and turned to look at him, only to find him looking away. "Something wrong?" she asked.

"It's just, I didn't expect your skirt and leggings to come off," Myu said, only partially turning his head so she could hear him.

"Well, of course they come off," she remarked. "Do you really think something like that is comfortable to wear all the time?"

"I guess not," Myu admitted.

"You know you are free to look at me, right?"

"Um, no."

"Why?"

"Where I'm from, it's rude to look at a woman without clothes."

"Your people have strange customs," Bella chuckled. "I'll respect your peoples' customs." She continued to bathe, and Myu decided to get up and move around, making sure to not look at Bella all the while. He walked around and came up to her closet. He saw that it consisted of the same things; white tops with skirts, and blue leggings. He didn't comment on that, but just continued to look around, anywhere but at Bella.

After she had finished, she stepped out, walking to her closet to grab a new set of clothes. She had been so tired last night that she hadn't noticed the soot that had stained her clothes and covered her skin. She only noticed it this morning when she saw her pillow had a black spot on it and decided to take a bath to clean herself. She grabbed a spare set of clothes and proceeded to dress herself.

Myu looked back at her closet and noticed a few sets without the skirt, and guessed that's what she normally sleeps in. After Bella finished dressing herself, Myu stopped ignoring her. He noticed that her top had straps that she put her arms through.

Once that was finished, Devoir came in to tell them that breakfast was ready. Bella escorted Myu to the dining area of the hut, where Devoir and Don the Charizard were already seated. They sat a wooden table. Myu had a problem. He was so short, and Devoir didn't have any chairs for his height. Myu tried to hop onto the table, but was too small to reach. Don reached down and picked Myu up gently with his clawed hands, setting him on the table.

"Thanks," Myu said.

"You're welcome," Don replied.

"So, Don," Devoir began, "are you recovered enough to start flying back to Azure Village?"

"I think so, but I'm going to spend the morning here and fly back this afternoon. I'm going to see if there's anything in your marketplace I need to get back," Don replied.

"So, what do you recall from being a Shadow?" Myu asked, nibbling on a pink Poffin.

"Hmm… nothing really," Don answered. "I remember taking a walk when I blacked out. Next thing I know, I'm in Crimson Village with frozen wings."

"Well, at least we know what happened to you," Bella said. "Do you think that's what happened to all of the other missing Pokémon? They got turned into Shadows?"

"I hope not," Devoir answered solemnly.

"Chances are high that it probably is some of them," Myu stated. "All Shadow Pokémon are Pokémon that have gone missing."

"Good grief," Devoir exclaimed. "If that's true, then we must be careful not to harm them from now on."

"What I want to know is what Shadow Don was after," Myu said. When everyone looked at him, he explained. "He wasn't trying to kill anyone, just scare you out of the village. His attack was concentrated to the huts. That implies that he didn't want to damage something. Question is, what?"

"Huh, Shadows don't normally look for something. They just attack," Bella said.

"Yes, they attack all over Avalon," Devoir explained. "When they first started appearing, it was just in the wilderness. Then, they started attacking individuals on the roads, then whole groups."

"All over Avalon?" Myu asked for clarification. When he got a series of nods, he realized something. "Then it isn't random attacks, they're searching for something. Is there something specific in this village that they can't get anywhere else?"

"Well, there is a stone building in the northeast part of the village, but no one's been in there for years," Devoir answered.

"How many years?"

"Um… it was before I was born," Devoir explained.

"Where is this stone building?" Myu asked.

"We actually passed it on our tour," Bella said.

"Shall we go take a look after breakfast?" Myu asked.

"Um, I guess," Bella agreed.

"Good." Myu had finished eating and was now waiting on the rest of them.

"Um, aren't you going to eat more?" Devoir asked, as Myu had only eaten a single Poffin.

"Nah, I'm good," Myu said. This surprised everyone present, as they had expected him to eat a lot more.

"Your species must not eat a lot," Bella commented.

* * *

After breakfast, Myu and Bella left the hut. Don had left for the market to get supplies for his way back to Azure Village. Myu had Bella lead him to the ancient stone building. When they arrived, Myu saw the building was dome-shaped, with two circular holes for windows, and an archway for entry.

"Well, this is quite big," Myu said. He started to walk forward, but he noticed that Bella wasn't following him. "Something wrong?"

"It just that… no one's been in there in a long time," Bella said. "I'm just worried that something might be dangerous in there."

"If no one has been in there, how do you know that something in there is dangerous?" Myu asked. Myu walked forward into the structure with Bella following reluctantly.

Myu looked around inside the structure, but the darkness made it difficult to see inside the room. He continued to look around and he noticed there were faded paintings at his eye level. He walked over to one of the paintings to examine it further. Bella was hesitant to follow, as it was too dark for her to see properly. Myu had no trouble as his night vision was better than hers. He tried to examine one of the paintings but was having difficulty due to the low light levels.

"I can't see these paintings," Myu complained. "We need more light. Are there any Pokémon that can produce a flame?"

"There is someone who might be able to help," Bella said.

"Get Zeni too," Myu said. "I think he might like to look at these."

* * *

A few minutes later, Bella returned with a Braixen and Zeni the Squirtle. "What is it that you need me to do?" the Braixen asked.

"Just light up the end of your stick," Bella said. The Braixen did ask asked and pulled her stick out, lighting up the end of it. The walls lit up in an orange glow. Myu looked up and saw that there were more paintings above and they were in full color.

"Guys, look up," Myu said. They looked up and saw the paintings.

"What are those?" Zeni asked.

"They're obviously paintings," Bella deadpanned.

"I know that. I meant, what they are depicting," Zeni rebutted.

"Well, they seem to show the function of this place," Myu said.

"Which is what?" Bella asked.

Myu looked at the paintings harder, and saw that many of the Pokémon in the paintings seemed to be worshiping others. There were symbols that denoted religious significance. "I think this might be a temple."

"What's a temple?" Bella wondered.

Zeni had an idea. "If I remember right, temple are places where Pokémon go to worship."

"Worship what?"

"Um… I don't know."

"To worship gods," Myu explained. "My people have places like these."

"Gods?" Bella asked.

"Supernatural beings that control the very fabric of nature," Myu elaborated.

"That's ridiculous," Zeni said. He didn't believe in things like that.

"Hey, I don't really buy it either, but it's what a lot of my people think."

"So, this place is to honor some 'gods'," Bella asked.

"Temples are usually to honor a single god, not all of them," Myu said. "Look at some of the paintings. See if there's one figure consistent in them."

The other two did as told, and looked at all the various murals to see if they could spot a similar being in all of them. Eventually they found that there was one blue figure that appeared in many of them.

"Looks like this place was built to worship some kind of water fairy," Zeni said.

"So, a small creature that's associated with water," Myu summarized. "Anything else?"

"Doesn't look like it," Bella said.

"Hmm. In my experience, places like this have some kind of hidden chamber," Myu said. "Look around the walls. See if there's anything like that here." They looked around, but couldn't find any kind of hidden door, at least until Zeni leaned against a wall, pushing a brick a way in and causing the section of the wall he was leaning on to spin around really fast.

"Hey, where's Zeni?" Bella asked.

Myu looked around but couldn't find the Squirtle. "Wasn't he here a second ago?" He walked over to where he saw him last, and noticed the wall was slightly turned. "Something's weird here." Before he could inspect any further, the wall spun again. Now Zeni, looking green, was standing where Myu had just been.

"I don't feel well," Zeni said before collapsing.

"Myu!" Bella exclaimed as she ran to the wall. "Myu, are you there?"

"I'm here," Myu's voice said, muffled by the wall. "I guess we found a hidden chamber."

"How do we get you out?"

"Ask Zeni."

"I don't think he's feeling well enough for that."

"Get your mom. I'm going to look around in here for a while."

"Okay, I'll be back!" Bella told the Braixen to remain there and watch over Zeni as she went to get Devoir. Meanwhile, Myu walked away from the wall to look around as best he could, which was hard considering the lack of light.

"Good thing I'm a cat with excellent night vision," Myu muttered to himself. Despite the night vision, it was still hard to see, as it was pitch dark. "How am I going to see in here?" He thought about Pokémon moves and how some could produce light. Problem was, he didn't know how to use them, if he even could.

 _Wait, I can use them. That sand shield, I did that maybe with Psychic?_ Myu thought. If he could use Psychic, what else could he use. He wracked his brain, trying to think if he knew any moves, but came up empty. _Come on, I need something, at least one move that produces light. It doesn't have to be big and powerful like Hyper Beam, just something that can create light._ He put his paws in front of him. A small blue light appeared between his paws. He lost concentration and it dissipated in a blue fog. _What was that?_ He concentrated again, keeping his paws apart, when the blue light appeared again. It grew in size until it was as big as his paws and kept growing until it was twice that size. It condensed into a glowing blue sphere of power and Myu recognized the move. _Aura Sphere!_ He knew that he was supposed to launch it, but instead, he 'held' it in one of his paws and used it as a light source.

"This will help," Myu said. He looked around the temple walls and noticed that the paintings were describing something. He looked closer, trying to figure out what's the paintings were saying. He heard a loud sound behind him and turned around to see Bella had entered.

"Ugh, I don't feel so good," Bella said.

"How did you get in here?" Myu asked.

"I was feeling around the wall you disappeared through, and my hand brushed against a stone that was jutting out of the wall," Bella explained.

"Well, now that you are here, maybe you can help me figure out what these paintings are saying," Myu said. He gestured to the paintings his Aura Sphere was illuminating. Bella glanced at the paintings before she noticed the light he held in his paw.

"Is that Aura Sphere?" Bella asked.

"I think it is," Myu stated.

"But I thought only Lucario could use that?"

"Not only Lucario," Myu said. "There are other species of Pokémon that can use it."

"Oh, cool" Bella said.

"Now then. Can you help me figure out what these paintings are saying?" Myu asked. The two of them worked to decipher the paintings.

"I think what they are saying, is that this was actually part of a larger place," Bella said.

Myu looked at some of the paintings, and he noted that they seemed to describe a specific location. "I think some of these are a map."

"They are?"

"Do you think you can get Zeni?"

"How do you suggest I do that?"

"Well, there seems to be some sort of lever you pushed to turn the wall," Myu said. "Try pushing it again."

"But... it makes me feel sick when I do that."

"Zeni is the only one with paper," Myu explained. "We need him to copy these maps."

"Okay, fine," Bella reluctantly agreed. She walked over to the wall and started feeling around for the lever. She pressed it by accident and the wall spun around again. Myu waited a couple seconds for Bella to get Zeni. The wall spun around again, and this time the Squirtle was with the Kirlia. They stumbled around for a few seconds before walking over to Myu.

"Okay, Myu," Zeni began, "Bella said you asked for me. What is it?"

"I need you to copy these maps," Myu said, gesturing to the drawings on the walls.

"All right, I'm on it," Zeni said. He retracted his arm into his shell and when it came back out, it had a few sheets of paper with it. He retracted his other arm into his shell and when it came out, he was holding a charcoal stick. He started to copy the maps onto the sheets of paper as best as he could. After a few minutes, he had the maps copied out. "All right, I'm done."

"All right then, let's get out of here," Myu said. He walked over to the wall with Bella and Zeni behind him. He felt around the wall trying to find the lever that activated it. Eventually one of his paws pressed against one of the stone bricks. The wall spun around again, and they were back in the main chamber. "All right, let's get these to Devoir."

* * *

A little while later, the three of them were before Devoir, and she was looking at the papers with the maps.

"Hmm, interesting," Devoir muttered.

"Do you have any idea where this map leads?" Myu asked.

"Well, it seems to lead to some stone structures to the west," Devoir said. "But that place is dangerous."

"Dangerous how?" Myu asked.

"There are rumors circulating around that place," Devoir explained. "There are supposed to be dangerous creatures lurking about that place."

"Well, whatever is there, these so-called Shadows want it. We need to get their first," Myu said.

"I can't just let you go there alone," Devoir said.

"Then how about I take a few other Pokémon with me," Myu asked.

"Are you sure about that?" Devoir asked.

"I'm sure."

"I'll gather the village together and see who wants to go along."

* * *

A short while later, the entire village was in the Gathering Hall. Devoir stood before a crowd of Pokémon with Myu next to her.

"May I have your attention, please!" Devoir shouted. All the Pokémon turned to look at her. "Thank you. Now, the reason I have gathered you all here, is because Myu," she gestured to the blue feline, "needs a group of people to help him explore the stone structures to the west of the village. Myu, explain what you need." She stepped to the side so that Myu became the center of attention.

"I need a small group, eight at most, to come with me to that place to investigate it. I don't really require anything, but you need to be able to leave for a couple of days. This could be dangerous, so don't feel obligated to go. Those who wish to come, may stand here," Myu gestured to his side.

"I'll go!" a Riolu said, jumping up and then running over. Myu recognized him as the Riolu he met yesterday. Lykos was his name.

"Welcome aboard," Myu said. Lykos didn't understand what 'aboard' meant, but he didn't question it.

"I'll come too," Zeni said, walking up. "You're going to need real brains on this."

"And someone to take care of you," a Buneary said, walking over. "Hi, I'm Mimi."

"I'll come too," a Dratini said, whom Myu recognized as Ryu. She slithered over and stopped next to Myu.

Myu looked over to Bella, silently asking her to come. She seemed hesitant, but eventually walked over.

"I guess I'll come along," she said. A big figured showed up behind her.

"I'm coming too. You're going to need some real muscle," Dominus the Eelektross said.

"Okay then. I can take one more," Myu announced.

"You kids are going to need an adult to help," a Machoke said, walking up. "I'm coming along, too."

"Alright then. Welcome," Myu said. He turned to face Devoir. "This is all I'm willing to take. We'll head for the stone structures tomorrow after we get supplies."

"Good, but take good care of my daughter, okay?" Devoir asked.

"I'll take good care of her," Myu promised. The crowd of Pokémon dispersed.

"Well, I'm going back to my hut to get some sleep. I can tell tomorrow is going to be a long day," the Machoke said, walking away.

"I'm going to get some practice in so I can protect all of you weaklings when we go," Dominus said, floating away. When they were gone, Myu turned to the five other Pokémon that were left.

"I'm glad you all are coming, and I'm especially grateful to you Bella, for being willing to come along," Myu said.

"You're welcome."

"I'm excited to get going!" Lykos said, almost bouncing up and down. "I can't wait to get there!"

"It will take almost the whole day to walk there," Zeni said. "You'll have to wait."

"Calm down, Lykos, or you won't be able to sleep tonight," Mimi warned.

"We'll need to get supplies in the morning before we leave," Myu said. "For now, return to your huts and sleep for the night and Bella and I will come get you in the morning."

They all said goodbye and left, leaving Myu and Bella alone.

"So, I guess I'm staying at your place, again," Myu said. "By the way. Are you comfortable with this? Leaving the village and going on an adventure away from home?" Bella pondered that for a while, but before she could answer, Myu spoke. "And I want a straight answer."

She paused and then said, "I've always wanted to go on an adventure."

 **End of Chapter 2**


	3. Chapter 3 - Water

**Tale of a Mew**

Myu, along with his team of seven other Pokémon, were now leaving Crimson Village. They had spent part of the morning gathering supplies for their expedition to the stone ruins to the west. Dominus, the Eelektross, was leading the small group of travelers, though no one chose him. Bella, the shiny Kirlia, was walking alongside Myu, and Zeni, the Squirtle, followed behind. Lykos, the Riolu, and Mimi, the Buneary, were walking side-by-side next to the group. Ryu, the Dratini, slithered next to them. The Machoke that volunteered to assist followed behind everyone else.

"All right, people, you follow me," Dominus said. "I will lead us to the stone structures."

"Do you even know where to go?" Myu asked.

"Uh... sure I do," Dominus defended. "We just follow this path and get off at..."

Myu figured out from the silence that he did not really know. "Zeni, I trust you know where to really go."

"I sure do," the Squirtle replied. " We should reach the go off point by about midday."

"We'll have to stop for lunch at that time," Mimi chimed in.

"I can't wait to get there," Lykos said, jumping up and down.

"You're gonna have to wait," Zeni said. "It'll take almost the whole day to get there."

"This is going to be a long walk, isn't it?" Bella asked rhetorically.

"The group had been walking for quite some time when Myu began to sing a little tune to himself.

" _As we go on a journey_

 _We will see things new & old_

 _We must be brave, we must be bold._

" _What is the reason?_

 _For our beginnings?_

 _As we find our way to the unknown?"_ Myu sang.

"Stop singing!" Dominus demanded.

"What's the problem? Hate music?" Myu asked.

"It's annoying is the problem," Dominus stated.

"I kind of like it," Bella said.

"What are you taking his side for?" Dominus demanded.

"I'm just saying it sounded kind of pretty," Bella defended herself.

"Well, I don't want to hear it," Dominus said. "So he needs to remain silent for the rest of this trip."

"Music hater," Myu muttered. "This is going to be one boring trip without something exciting."

"I don't hate music!" Dominus defended. "I just don't want to hear your annoying voice for the length of this trip - ow!" Dominus flinched when he felt a searing pain. He looked at his arm and saw a little yellow creature. He began to shake his arm rapidly, trying to dislodge the little bug. Eventually, it fell off on its own.

"What is that?" Myu asked.

"Joltik, the Attaching Pokémon," Zeni began. "Joltik cling to larger Pokémon, and absorb static electricity, storing the energy in a special pouch."

"He's so cute," Mimi said.

"The little bug bit me!" Dominus screeched.

"Well, they do need electricity to survive," Myu said.

"I don't care," Dominus said. "He bit me and he's going to pay."

The Joltik was starting to skitter away, having received enough electricity. Dominus wasn't about to let it get away though. He followed after, charging up a Zap Cannon.

"Wait, Dominus! I wouldn't do that if I were you!" Zeni warned, but he was too late. Dominus fired off the electric ball and it struck the bug causing it to crash into a tree trunk.

Dominus cheered at his seeming victory, but the tree the Joltik slammed into shook and several more Joltik fell out, along with several larger arachnid Pokémon.

"What are those?" Lykos asked.

"Galvantula, the EleSpider Pokémon," Zeni informed. "Galvantula attack its prey by shooting electrically-charged threads and its front mandibles can hold down opponents."

"It's just a bunch of big bugs," Dominus said cockily. "I can beat them easily."

"Individually, maybe," Zeni said. "But wildlings may attack as a group if they are provoked."

Sure enough, the Joltik and Galvantula fired electric webbing at Dominus, pinning him to a tree. He tried to fight against it, but it was too strong.

"What is that stuff?" Bella asked.

"That would be Electroweb," Zeni informed. "It's very tough and shocks the foe."

"Get this stuff off of me!" Dominus demanded.

"No way," Myu said. "I would say you've stepped in it this time, but you don't have any feet."

"The wildlings should leave us alone, so long as we do not attack them," Zeni informed.

Before long, Dominus was attacked by all the electric spiders. Once they felt they had done enough damage, they went back to their tree, taking their wounded comrade with them. Dominus collapsed on the ground, damaged from all the attacks.

"Ow… I'll get them for this," Dominus muttered. He tried to get up, but ended up collapsing back onto the ground.

"What's wrong with him?" Myu asked.

"Well," Zeni began, "Joltik drain the electricity out of Electric Pokémon, and since Eelektross need electricity to hover, he can't fly."

"Stupid bugs. I'm going to destroy them!" Dominus shouted. He tried to get up, but once again fell down.

"Yeah, you can't fly," Myu stated. "Machoke, get him back to the village."

"Why me?" he asked.

"Dominus can't make it back on his own, and the rest of us are either too small or too weak," Myu said. The Machoke grabbed Dominus and put him over his shoulder.

"Hey, put me down!" Dominus demanded.

"What are the rest of you going to do?" the Machoke asked.

"We're going to continue on," Myu said.

"I'll tell Devoir of that," the Machoke said. He started walking away, with Dominus protesting rather loudly.

"We haven't even reached the stones, and we've already lost two of our party," Myu said. "Not the best start."

"If you ask me, we didn't need them," Zeni said. "We can do this just fine on our own."

"I hope you're right, Zeni," Myu said. "Onward!" The six Pokémon continued their walk. When midday came around, they got off the road and settled down for lunch. Mimi got out a few Poffins from the pouch on her waist and handed them to everyone.

"I made sure to pack enough for everyone, and I made sure that they are everyone's favorite," Mimi said.

"Thanks, Mimi," Lykos said.

"Hey, Myu," Bella asked, "why were you singing while we were walking, and why that particular song?"

"It was mainly to fill the big space," Myu answered. "It was also because the trip was rather boring, and it made it a little more exciting."

"Why that particular song though? And what is that song? I've never heard it before," Bella asked.

"It was just going through my head, and it's a song from my home," Myu answered.

"Ah, it sounded rather pretty," Bella commented.

"Thank you."

A while later, they started the trek through the forest. Myu and Ryu had the easiest time. The other four were having difficulties. The uneven ground and the tree roots sticking out of the ground and the branches hanging overhead were making it difficult to keep up. Eventually though, they reached the end of the forest and pushed a final few branches out of the way to see the stone structures.

"Finally! We're here!" Lykos exclaimed.

"And we're finally out of that forest!" Mimi said.

"Alright, then. Let's find out what they wanted here," Myu said, walking toward the stones. He stopped when he noticed that only Zeni and Lykos were following him. "Come on girls, what are you afraid of?"

"Well, it's just… rumors about this place aren't very good," Bella said.

"Come on. It can't be that bad," Myu said. "Besides, there's six of us. I'm sure we can handle whatever happens."

Reluctantly, the girls followed the boys through the stone structures. Myu started to notice something peculiar about the structures.

"Anyone else noticing something odd about these?" Myu asked.

"Odd how?" Zeni asked.

"Well, some of these stones look like blocks," Myu observed. "And I think some of those structures are columns. And I think some of the others are buildings."

The others looked around and they did notice that there was something odd about the structures.

"I always thought that they were just unusually shaped," Ryu said.

"No, there seems to be tool marks on these," Myu said. "Someone obviously made these."

"But who?" Bella asked.

"If I had to guess, I'd say your ancestors lived here," Myu said.

"Why would our ancestors live in a miserable place like this?" Mimi asked.

"It probably didn't always look like this," Myu said. "A long time ago, these buildings were probably intact. If I had to guess, I'd say that we are standing in a ruin."

"What's a 'ruin'?" Bella asked.

"It's the destroyed remains of a city," Myu explained.

"What's a city?" Mimi asked.

"It's like a village, only bigger," Myu explained. "We need to fan out and explore this place. We need to find out what the Shadows want with this place."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Ryu asked. "I mean, our ancestors abandoned this place for a reason. How do we know this place isn't still dangerous?"

"Ryu, I'm pretty sure that whatever scared your ancestors away probably isn't here anymore," Myu reassured. "This place was obviously abandoned a long time ago. Come on, let's go!"

Everyone started to look around, investigating many of the destroyed buildings and brick pavement for clues. They were unaware, however, that they were being watched. Myu eventually came across a massive stone building in the shape of a dome. On the outside there were markings that were similar to the Temple from the Crimson Village. He called the others over.

"Look at this place! It's huge!" Myu exclaimed. "There's probably something inside that's important. Let's go in and find out." Myu started to walk in, only to realize that the others weren't following him. "Something wrong?"

"Well, it's just… it doesn't exactly look friendly," Bella said nervously.

"Still, that shouldn't stop us. Besides, what are you afraid of?" Myu asked. "It's not like there's going to be some monster inside." Myu continued forward, the others following along behind, a couple of them reluctantly. They entered the building and found that there were several paintings inside lining the walls. The others admired the paintings, awed at what they depicted.

"Wow, what are those things?" Zeni asked.

"Murals of legendary creatures," Myu said.

"There's so many of them," Bella said.

"But they all seem to share a general theme," Myu observed. "And that theme is water."

Zeni looked around and noticed some stone shelves with stone blocks stacked on them. He walked over to examine them. He picked one up and noticed writing on them. "Hey guys. Come look at these." They came over and stood around Zeni. "There's some sort of ancient writing on these."

"Can you read it?" Myu asked.

"I can try," Zeni answered. "It seems to call this place... Water City. Apparently, it's the home of all Water-type Pokémon and all types related to it."

"So, water Pokémon came from here?" Bella asked.

"It seems that way," Zeni explained.

"Anything else to add?" Myu asked.

"That's all I can make out," Zeni said. He puts the tablet aside and picked up another one. "This one seems to describe a race of extremely powerful creatures that come by here every now and then. It calls them 'Legendary Pokémon', and apparently each one controls some aspect of the oceans. Yeah, right."

"Sounds interesting," Myu said. Zeni didn't pay it much mind and put it away. He grabbed yet another tablet and looked at it.

"This one's more interesting," Zeni said. "From what I can tell of it, it describes four other cities: Earth City, Air City, Fire City, and Spirit City. They were the homes of all the different Pokémon. Each one was regularly visited by different Legendary Pokémon. This tablet even has the locations of each one."

"That could be what the Shadows are after," Myu said. "We should take it with us."

"I'll take it," Bella offered. Zeni handed her the tablet. She was unprepared for its weight and it pulled her toward the ground. She tried to lift it up, but it was incredibly heavy.

"Zeni, look at some of the other tablets. See what you can find," Myu said.

Zeni sorted through the other tablets. "Some of these are describing the Legendary Pokémon that come here."

"That could be helpful," Myu concluded. "Let's take them with us." Zeni didn't see the helpfulness but didn't argue. He handed the tablets to Lykos, Mimi, and Myu. Mimi was struggling with the tablet she was given, but Lykos and Myu weren't having as much trouble, and Myu was even able to hold several with his tail.

"Okay, let's head back to -" Myu began, but was cut off when a Hydro Pump slammed into Bella, causing her to let go of the tablet she was struggling to hold. Everyone else turned to the entrance, and saw a Croconaw standing there, with an aggressive look on its face.

"Think he's a Shadow?" Lykos asked.

"I think so," Zeni answered.

Before anyone else could react, the Croconaw shot off several more Hydro Pumps. They dodged the best they could, but only Ryu could avoid them. The Croconaw walked over to the tablets that everyone dropped and started looking through them. Myu got up and noticed what the Croconaw was doing.

"He's looking for something in particular. Stop him!" Myu shouted. Zeni got up first and fired a Water Pulse at the Croconaw, but he used Crunch to tear it apart and then shot another Hydro Pump at Zeni, knocking the Squirtle away. Lykos was next to join the fight running at the Croconaw with Quick Attack, but the Croconaw used Slash to send him away.

Ryu charged at the Croconaw with Dragon Rush, but the Croconaw stopped her with another Hydro Pump, then used Slash on her to send her flying.

Mimi wanted to help and tried using Dizzy Punch on the Croconaw, but it bit her ear with Crunch, canceling her attack and causing her to shout in pain. Lykos ran to her rescue, using Force Palm on the Croconaw's jaw to make it release her. Lykos caught Mimi in his arms and prepared to run away, but the Croconaw struck him with Aqua Tail, sending them both to the ground.

Myu knew this was bad and saw it get worse when the Croconaw picked up the tablet that Bella dropped. It started to walk away with it, but Myu wasn't about to let it get far. He got up and put his paws to his side, charging an Aura Sphere between them and fired it off when fully charged. The Aura Sphere struck the Croconaw, but it didn't fall. The Croconaw turned around and fired a Hydro Pump at Myu.

Myu put his paws out in what he knew was a futile defense. But surprisingly, a transparent barrier appeared in front of him, blocking the Hydro Pump. When the attack ended, Myu stared at his paws in awe. _That was Barrier!_ He thought. _Aura Sphere won't work again, so I need another move, but do I know any others?_ He didn't think so, but then remembered his accidental use of Psychic the other day, but he didn't know what triggered that. _Okay, so I remembered being scared when I used it, and Barrier was formed the same way. Is fear the trigger? No, emotion! Both are Psychic moves, and emotions are mental reactions. So maybe if I just put some emotion into it, I could trigger the move and control it._ He realized a problem with that: he wasn't a very emotional person and at times he even thought he was emotionally stunted. How could he put emotion into something when he could barely feel?

Bella had recovered in the meantime and decided to join the fight. She fired a Thunderbolt at the Croconaw, and it struck, but she didn't knock it out. It fired another Hydro Pump at her, but she grabbed it with Psychic, stopping and causing it to fall apart. But it was just a distraction for the Croconaw to close the gap and strike her with Shadow Claw. Bella flew into a wall, knocked out.

"Bella!" Myu exclaimed. He turned to the Croconaw and felt anger at it, and fear for Bella. Trying to focus the emotions, he reached forward with one of his paws and felt Psychic target the Croconaw. With a flick of his paw, he sent the Croconaw flying, the tablet falling from its claws. The Croconaw quickly recovered and focused on Myu. Myu saw the enraged look on its features and panicked. The anger had already dissipated, and he doubted fear would be sufficient to stop it.

Myu turned to look at the unconscious Bella. Her mother told him to protect her, and he wouldn't let her down. He saw the others around him, injured and unable to fight, looking to him, hoping he could win. Myu refused to let them down. With determination filling him, he extended his arm once again, focusing on the Croconaw as it charged at him with a Crunch at the ready. Myu used the determination to fuel his Psychic and stopped the Croconaw mid-stride. He then lifted it into the air and slammed it down on the ground.

"Go, Myu!" Myu turned to the source of the voice and saw Lykos looking at him with excitement and amazement. He could tell the others had the same expression of awe, and Myu felt pride in that. With that, he clenched his fist, and with a swipe of his arm, sent the Croconaw into the wall of the building, and with another swipe, sent it into the adjacent wall. The Croconaw still wasn't out and tried struggling against Myu's telekinetic grip. Myu didn't want to hurt the Pokémon too badly, as he knew it was being controlled, but he was left with no choice but to knock it out. He brought his fist down, and the Croconaw was slammed into the ground, hard.

Myu released it, and when the dust cleared, the Croconaw was out.

"That was awesome!" Lykos exclaimed. Before anything else could be said, a purple glow surrounded the Croconaw, which exploded outwards in every direction. The Croconaw opened its eyes and slowly sat up.

"Ow, what happened?" it asked, and just then Myu realized it was female, as it had a feminine voice.

"You were turned into a Shadow," Myu answered. "I had to knock you out to stop you."

"Oh, thanks, I think," she said, holding her head.

"That was an interesting way of using Psychic, Myu," Zeni said, walking over.

"What do you mean?" Myu asked.

"We don't use our arms when using Psychic, at least not like that," Bella answered, having recovered.

"That Psychic was also incredibly strong!" Mimi exclaimed. "Even Devoir isn't that powerful. How can you be this small and that powerful?"

"I don't know," Myu lied, as he knew the answer to that.

"Well, regardless, problem solved," Ryu said.

"Where are you from?" Mimi asked the Croconaw.

"Orange Village," she answered.

"Orange Village?" Zeni questioned. "That's a long way away. We're just west of Crimson Village," Zeni answered the Croconaw's unasked question.

"It's too dangerous for her to head back there alone," Bella said. "She'll have to stay at Crimson Village until we can arrange something."

"We're going to have to stay here for the night," Myu said.

"Why?" Bella asked, until a blast of thunder was heard, followed by the sound of water pouring outside. Everyone looked outside and saw that it was raining.

"And it's too late to head back," Myu added.

"He's right. The wildlings will attack us on the road," Zeni said.

"I'll get a fire started then," Mimi stated.

"I've got a few traveling beds with me," Zeni said. He retracted his arms into his shell and pulled out several rolled-up bags. "Problem is, I don't have enough for all of us. I could only get five."

"I don't need one of those," Ryu said. "I'm more comfortable sleeping on the ground."

"I'll do that too," Myu spoke up. "I'll just sleep curled up on the ground."

* * *

An hour later, the sleeping arrangements had been made, the fire was set up, and Mimi had shared a few Poffins there were left over to eat. After everyone ate, they spent the rest of the night reminiscing about the day, while Zeni poured over the tablets. After a few hours of sharing stories, everyone but Myu and Zeni had fallen asleep. Myu laid next to Zeni. The Squirtle had a paper laid out next to him and was writing on it.

"Still working on translating the language?" Myu asked.

"Yep. I've pulled a lot of late-nighters doing research," Zeni answered. "What about you? Why are you still up?"

"I like staying up late," Myu answered. "What have you figured out so far?"

"Well, from what I can tell, their phonetics, words, and alphabet are the same as our Common, but the character system differs. Every letter has these dotted circles somewhere in the letter. I'm trying to work on figuring out which character is which, but I'm having difficulty."

Myu looked at the letters and found that he could read the tablet. "It doesn't seem that hard, I can make out many of the letters and numbers."

"Hmm, maybe their alphabet is similar to yours."

"It's possible." Myu looked at one of the tablets. "This one looks like it's about a Mythical Pokémon called Manaphy. There's some sort of temple dedicated to it, but this doesn't say where."

"Let's figure it out tomorrow," Zeni suggested. "I'm tired and need to sleep now."

"I'll put out the fire," Myu said. He started walking to the fire, only for a Water Gun to put it out. Myu glared at Zeni, who just smirked back in the darkened building. The Squirtle climbed into his own bag and soon fell asleep.

Myu curled up next to Bella but spent a few minutes listening to the pitter-patter of the rain outside. His eyelids started growing heavy and he started to fall asleep. His head shot up, as he was suddenly alert. He wasn't sure why, but something had made his instincts, something he was still learning about, to wake him up. He looked around, hoping to spot whatever it was that woke him up, but not spotting it, he laid back down and started to fall asleep, no matter how much his instincts told him someone was watching.

 **End of Chapter 3**


	4. Chapter 4 - Forge

**Tale of a Mew**

Zeni was busy studying the tablets they found during their adventure at the water ruins the day before. He was trying to translate the written language of their ancestors into their more comprehensive modern writing system. So far though, he wasn't having much luck. Myu had insisted that he get a rubric written up quickly. He was worried that whatever was on the tablets was something that the Shadows needed.

Myu walked up to check on Zeni's progress. "So, how are your translations coming?"

"It's slowly coming along," Zeni answered.

"That bad?" Myu asked. Zeni hung his head, wishing he had better news.

"Yes. Trying to translate this old language is hard," Zeni said.

"Can I help?" Myu asked.

"I guess, since you seem to be better at understanding all this." Myu laid down next to Zeni and looked over the tablets.

"So, what have you managed to translate so far?"

"Well, from what I can tell, their spoken language is identical to ours, though they use different characters for their written language. It's made it rather hard to translate as I've had to figure out the modern equivalent for each character." Myu looked at the tablets and noticed that Zeni was right. "Most of these tablets, though, refer to the Legendaries and their powers. The tablets say that they are capable of controlling the oceans, land, sky, weather, seasons, our dreams, time, space, the currents, emotions, creation and destruction, life, the sun and the moon." Myu noticed that Zeni sounded skeptical about all that. "It mentions that there are a lot of Legendaries, but it doesn't give a precise number. It also says that different Legendaries visited different cities."

"Is there anything else?"

"Well, there is one weird thing that keeps popping up." Zeni pointed to something on the tablet. "This character keeps popping up over and over and I have no idea what it means." The character in question was a bisected circle with another smaller circle in the center. Myu looked at the other tablets and noticed that the ones with color had the circle painted. The top was red, and the bottom was white.

"I don't think it's a character," Myu said. "I think it's actually a sigil."

"What's a sigil?"

"A mark or brand that designates a group of people."

"So, what does it represent then?" Zeni asked.

"I'm not sure."

"What function does it serve, then?"

"Like I said, it identifies a group of people."

"Identifies them from...?"

"Well, a different group of people."

Zeni reached over and grabbed another tablet. "Like ,maybe, this?" Zeni pointed to another mark on the tablet, this one was different.

"Like that."

"But where would that sigil come from?" Zeni asked. "No village on Avalon uses that."

"It doesn't have to come from Avalon. Are there any other lands that might use a sigil like that?"

"There are no other lands. It's just an endless ocean outside of Avalon."

"Well, obviously not. Are you absolutely sure there is nothing out there? How far outside of Avalon has anyone gone?"

"As far as anyone can safely travel."

"So, not very far then?"

"Well, there is only so far a Water Pokémon can travel without tiring, and there is only so far a Flying Pokémon can travel without getting hungry."

"Isn't there any other way to leave Avalon?"

"Not that we are aware of."

Myu continued to look over the tablets and noticed that Zeni had set some aside. "What's on those?"

"I'm not sure. It uses the same written alphabet, but the words don't make any sense."

Myu looked at those specific tablets and noticed something about them. "I don't think they're words. I think this is a formula." Zeni looked at him with an eyebrow raised. "See this mark? It's a plus sign. And this letter by this number, it's a multiplication shorthand," Myu said, pointing to the symbols. "This is a formula for something, but what, I don't know."

"Interesting," Zeni muttered. "But I wonder why our ancestors felt the need to record what is no more than a math problem?"

Myu examined some of the letters and noticed something. Many of the letters were capitalized or came in pairs. "I think these are element symbols."

"So what elements are they?" Zeni asked.

"'C' is for carbon, and 'Fe' stands for iron," Myu explained. "This could be a formula for creating something."

"I wonder what it could be."

"Maybe we should find out," Myu said standing up. "Do you have a forge around here?"

"What's a 'forge'?" Zeni asked.

Myu hung his head and spoke. "Okay. How about I give you a list of supplies to build something with?"

"All right. What do you need?"

Myu grabbed a piece of paper and a charcoal stick and wrote down a list of items. Zeni looked over the sheet and raised an eyebrow at a few of the items. "What could you need with a few pounds of sand, rock powder and water?"

"You'll find out."

Zeni shrugged his shoulders and walked off to gather the supplies that Myu wanted.

* * *

Three days later, Myu picked up the blocks he had requested a Stone Carver create to his specific dimensions and placed them on the ground south of the crops. Zeni met him with a cart loaded with the supplies that Myu had asked him to gather.

"All right, Myu, here you go," Zeni said. "Now, what are you going to do with all of these?"

"Well, for starters, you are going to mix the sand , rock powder and water in that big bucket that I had you get," Myu answered.

"What are you going to be doing?"

"I'm going to be placing these blocks in a certain way." Without any further words, Zeni got to work putting the sand, rock powder and water in the bucket. He used a large flat ended stick to mix the materials together. Myu started placing the stone blocks on the ground in a rough, circular shape. When Myu had finished dry fitting the stone blocks, he came over and checked Zeni's progress.

"It seems that the mortar is properly blended."

"Mortar?" Zeni asked.

Myu grabbed a flat bone and scooped up some of the mortar. As fast as he could, he plopped it between the blocks and set them as close together as possible, making sure there were no gaps. Then he began to spread it on the top of the blocks. Zeni stopped stirring, but Myu told him to keep it up.

"You need to keep stirring the mortar or it will harden and become useless." Myu continued to spread the mortar over the blocks and set each one. Zeni continued to stir the mortar. When Myu finished spreading it over a block, he grabbed another block and placed it on top. Once that was done, he scooped more mortar and spread it over the block. He repeated this process block by block, layer by layer. As time passed, Zeni noticed that Myu was arranging the blocks in a semi-sphere shape, with a hollow inside, and the mortar changed from dark grey to almost white in color.

Myu had also grabbed a piece of leather and stretched it over curved wooden slabs with handles, and placed the opening of the new object into a lower opening in the structure.

By the time night fell, they had finished building their project and just in time, as they had run out of mortar. "Alright, we're done," Myu announced.

"Great. So what is it?"

"This is a forge." Myu waved his arms to the stone structure, which had a stone base a few blocks high before it curved into a dome. Zeni noticed an opening in it, and the hollow inside was sunk in to the base.

"So, what's it do?"

Myu thought about answering, but then decided against it. "I'll tell you what. I'll show you tomorrow. I need a few more things that will be made tonight and collect them in the morning."

"Alright then. See you tomorrow," Zeni said as he walked away. After Myu requested specific items from other villagers, he started for the hut that belonged to the Chieftess, as he still lived there. As he walked in, he was greeted by Devoir.

"What were you two doing so late? Bella already went to bed," Devoir asked.

"We were making something and I'm going to continue to work on it tomorrow," he answered.

"You better get some rest, then," Devoir suggested. Myu walked to Bella's room and curled up on the leaves that made up his bed.

* * *

The next morning, Myu had grabbed two stone carvings that he had had made the night before, along with three pieces of wood carved into very specific shapes. He was standing by the forge that he had made yesterday, while he waitied for Zeni to come. He had requested that Zeni get several different materials. After a few minutes of waiting, Zeni came with a cart full of different elements.

"All right. I got everything you wanted," Zeni said as he put the cart down. "Pure iron ore, graphite, gold, and a bunch of other miscellaneous rocks." Myu walked up to examine the different rocks. "Can I ask what exactly you are going to do with these?"

"I'm going to use the forge to mix these elements together and then pour them into those molds that I had made."

"Can we watch?" Zeni and Myu turned around to see Lykos, Mimi, Bella, Ryu, and Dominus.

"Sure, but I also need something from Ryu." Myu walked up to the Dratini with a cup.

"What do you need from me?"

"I need some of your saliva," Myu said while holding the cup up to her.

"What?"

"I just need you to drool into this cup. When it's full, that'll be all I'll need from you."

"Um, okay."

"Hey, Lykos, do you think you could also assist me?"

"You're not going to have me spit into a cup, are you?"

"Actually, no, but I will need your muscles for assistance. I also want Zeni to help out." He turned to the Squirtle. "Did you get the other things that I requested?"

"One stone cup with a _long_ handle," Zeni said, holding up the object.

"All right, then, let's begin." Myu turned to the cart and picked up several different rocks. "We'll start by mixing these elements together."

"Why these specific rocks?" Bella asked.

"Because these are the elements on the tablet that Zeni and I translated. And they are combined to make a unique kind of metal."

"What kind of metal?"

"I'm not sure. Zeni, what does the translation say?"

"I'm not entirely sure," he answered.

"Well, you two," Myu said pointing to Lykos and Zeni, "start taking all the elements except the gold and put them into the cup." Myu picked up several pieces of coal. "I'm going to get the fire started."

"How are you going to do that?" Mimi asked.

Myu dumped the coal into the pit of the forge. He then grabbed two flint stones and struck them together. The sparks touched the coal and they ignited which created a small fire. Everyone took several steps back from that. Zeni and Lykos came over with the cup filled with the elements that Myu wanted.

"Good. Now place the cup in the fire," Myu instructed. Lykos placed the cup into the fire. "Now we have to wait a while." Myu floated over to Ryu. "It seems you filled the cup up enough." He picked the cup up and flew over to the pieces of wood. He picked up the longest piece, which had been painted a solid black, and poured the contents of the cup into little holes built into one of the ends. "Mimi, I had made another request but it wasn't finished when I checked in. Could you go to the Weavers and see if it's finished?"

"Sure," Mimi said, and hopped away. She came back holding two strands of black cloth. "One strand of cloth one meter long, another strand two meters long." She handed them to Myu.

"Thank you." He placed them down and walked over to check on the forge. He peered inside and saw that the elements had blended together into an orange liquid. "That's done. Lykos, you can take it out now." Lykos walked over and grabbed the handle. "Now, very quickly, I want you to pour it into this stone mold here." He pointed to the long slab of stone with a curved rectangle in it. "Try not to spill any of it because it will be hard to clean up, and don't touch it either unless you want to get burned." Lykos cautiously walked over and tilted the cup so it would fill the mold.

"Good. Now, do the same with the gold. We'll let this cool somewhat before we do anything with it," Myu instructed. Lykos and Zeni repeated the process with the gold, placing it in the fire and waiting for it to melt. After a few minutes, it was liquid. Lykos grabbed the cup and walked over to two molds that Myu pointed out, which were almost identical. He filled both molds. "Good. Now I need you to, very quickly, press the two together and hold them that way." Lykos tried to pick the molds up, but they were both too heavy for him, so Zeni came over and picked up one. The two molds were slapped together before any of the gold could leak out.

"How long do we have to hold it like this?" Lykos asked.

"Until it cools," Myu answered. "Which should take a few minutes." As the Riolu and Squirtle stood there, holding the molds together, Myu got to work on the other one. He dumped out the semi-cooled metal onto a stone slab. He grabbed a stone mallet and began pounding on one side of the metal slab. After a few minutes, Myu told Zeni to let go of his mold. After it fell to the ground, the two of them saw that the gold had solidified. Carefully, they took it out, and Myu got to work putting all the pieces together. The rest of them passed the time discussing what Myu was building.

An hour later, Myu had finished. He walked up to them, with his finished project in hand.

"What did you make, Myu?" Bella asked.

"What could he have made from a bunch of junk?" Dominus smirked. "Iron ore, graphite, gold, wood, strands of cloth, Dratini spit, and a bunch of other minerals that don't bear mentioning. What could have been made with all of those?"

"This," Myu said, holding it up.

"So, a pretty piece of wood?" Bella asked.

Myu grabbed the end that was wrapped in cloth, and with a metallic ring, pulled out a sharpened piece of curved silver metal. Everyone was amazed at that.

"What is it?" Lykos asked.

"Where I'm from, we call this a katana," Myu explained.

"So, it's a pretty piece of metal. Big whoop," Dominus said sarcastically. He took a drink from his cup. After he lowered his arm, Myu swung the katana and cut the bottom of the cup off, spilling the rest of the drink on the ground.

"It's a lot more than a pretty piece of wood. It's used for combat, and since I don't know a lot of moves or can use them very well, I figured this would give me an edge."

"Well, I have managed to translate more of this tablet, and I think I got a location," Zeni said.

Myu put his sword back into its sheath. "So, where do we go next?"

 **End of Chapter 4**

* * *

 **Chapter 5 - May 18  
**


	5. Chapter 5 - Azure

**Tale of a Mew**

Zeni was showing his translations of the tablet they found in the Water Ruins to Myu, Bella, Lykos, Mimi, and Ryu. "Okay, so I've been working on this for the past couple days, and I think I've got a location for one of the cities this tablet mentions."

"Where is it?" Mimi asked.

"It doesn't say exactly, just somewhere in 'the endless grass sea'. This place is called Air City," Zeni responded.

"'Endless grass sea'? What the heck does that mean?" Lykos asked.

"Maybe it means its located in a massive plain," Myu said.

"A plain?" Bella asked. "There's an open plain east of Plains Village."

"Maybe that's where we should go. If the Shadows want what's there, then we need to get to it first," Myu said.

"We'll come too, right guys?" Lykos asked the others.

"My research, so yes," Zeni said.

"Our last adventure was fun. I'm in," Bella said.

"Lykos isn't going anywhere without me," Mimi said.

"I guess I can come too," Ryu said quietly.

"Great," Myu said. "We'll just need to inform Devoir and get directions to this place." Myu walked off to talk to the Chieftess.

* * *

Devoir looked over Zeni's translations that Myu handed her. "Are you sure about this?" Devoir asked.

"I'm sure," Myu stated. "We need to get there, and fast. If the Shadows happen to find it…"

"Find what exactly?"

"I don't know, but whatever it is, they want it enough to kill, so it can't be anything good. My associates are willing to go there, but we need directions to get to Plains Village."

"Take the east road to Azure Village as a start. From there, Don will provide you with directions. When are you planning to leave?"

"I think as soon as we've got the supplies we need," Myu responded.

"Well, make sure my daughter is okay during the trip, alright?"

"Ma'am, I'll do my best."

* * *

Some time later, Myu and his small band of travelers were on the east road to Azure Village. As they walked, they made a quick checklist.

"Poffins?"

"Check!"

"Water?"

"Check!"

"Tents?"

"Check!"

"Tent stakes?"

"Check!"

"Medicine?"

"Check!"

"Sleeping bags?"

"Check!"

"Good, we've got everything we need, then," Myu said.

"Remind me again why Dominus isn't coming along?" Bella asked.

"Because the last time he came along, he disturbed a nest of angry Joltik and Galvantula," Myu stated. "We don't need someone who shoots first and asks questions later."

"Plus, he's boring," Lykos said.

"And this trip is going to take several moons," Zeni said. "We don't need someone that big slowing us down."

"Plus, he'd eat all the supplies we could carry," Mimi added.

"We'll need to set up camp tonight. We won't make it to Azure Village today." Zeni said.

"Let's keep going until we lose the daylight," Myu suggested.

* * *

After a few hours of travel, night had fallen, and the group set up camp just off the road. Mimi had brought out several Poffins for everyone to eat. Myu picked up a pink Poffin and started nibbling on it.

"So, how long will it take to get to Azure Village?" Myu asked.

"If we start early enough, we should get there by mid-afternoon," Bella informed, eating a pink Poffin.

"You know how long it takes?" Lykos asked, taking a bite out of a pink Poffin.

"My mom used to take me to Azure Village when I was younger," Bella answered.

"How long will it take to get to this 'Air City'?" Mimi asked, eating a red Poffin.

"A few moons, assuming we can easily find it in the Great Plains ," Zeni said, eating a yellow Poffin.

"Is there any other way you can find the city besides the riddle?" Myu asked.

"Nope."

"Well, is there anything else about the city that you were able to translate?"

"Just that it was the home of all Flying, Dragon, and Bug Types, and the home of some Legendary called Rayquaza."

"Interesting."

"What do you think we'll find there, Myu?" Lykos asked.

"I don't know. Perhaps more tablets," the Mew answered.

"Well, we need sleep if we're to get to Azure Village tomorrow," Mimi suggested. "We should probably end our little conversation now."

"Alright. Zeni, put out the fire and we'll go to bed."

After Zeni did he was as told, the six Pokémon went into separate tents; girls in one, boys in the other.

* * *

Meanwhile, in a dark place, a blue Gallade was staring into a reflective pool, observing the six Pokémon in the reflection.

"Okay. So there are a few Pokémon on the East road. So what?" he asked, turning to his companion.

"These six are dangerous and a hazard to my plan," the figure answered.

"I fail to see how a few children are a hazard."

"They are heading to the Air Ruins. They intend to confront our minions or they will take what we want from there and leave."

"I still don't see how they are a danger. No one can defeat a Shadow."

"One of these six has defeated two." He waved a black paw and the image focused on the Mew.

"What is that? I've never seen a Pokémon like that."

"It is a Mew and it is a Legendary Pokémon."

The Gallade stared at the blue cat in awe. "What? I thought they were all gone."

"It appears that one survived."

"Then I shall send a Shadow to defeat him."

"You have failed to defeat him twice, and everyday he grows stronger. He's not just powerful, he is intelligent, something uncharacteristic of a Legendary." The dark figure pondered on that. "I wonder why."

"We can still defeat him if we send the right Shadow."

"I think not. A single Shadow isn't strong enough. I shall send two."

"You?"

"You failed to make the Pokémon in Crimson Village leave, and you failed to retrieve the locations of the other ruins. I shall send the Shadows. Not you." And with that, he left the Gallade.

* * *

The next day, Myu's group was walking on the road. The sun was high in the sky. As they walked, some were pondering on what they would find once they reached Air City and hoped that there might still be Pokémon there. Others were wondering if this Rayquaza was real and somewhere in the city. As they reached the top of a hill, they saw Azure Village not too far away now.

"Finally! We're here!" Zeni said, rubbing his legs.

"Looks just like I remember it," Bella commented.

They made their way into the village and Myu noticed how it looked almost identical to Crimson Village.

"We should find Don to let him know we are here," Mimi suggested. They looked around the village and eventually found the Charizard.

"Don!" Bella exclaimed, running up and hugging the Charizard's leg.

"Hey there. Glad to see you," Don said. He saw the five other Pokémon in the group and greeted them. "What are the six of you doing here?"

"It's a long story," Myu said.

"Come to my hut and tell it."

* * *

Myu told Don about what they had done in the Water Ruins, and what they had discovered. The elder Charizard took it well.

"So, the Shadows aren't attacking randomly then. They're after something in this 'Air City'," the Charizard summarized.

"We need to find it before they do," Bella said. "Do you know of any place like that?"

"I've been all over Avalon, little one, and I've never seen a place like that," Don answered.

"Well, we're hoping to find something in the Great Plains," Myu said. "Can you give us directions to Plains Village?"

"Sure, but you might want to spend a night here. It will be a long time before you get to the next village."

"We'll stay here then!" Lykos agreed.

"I guess, but only for a single night. We can't afford to waste time," Myu agreed.

"Great. I'll show you around Azure Village," Bella said.

* * *

Bella gave Myu a tour of the village, but there wasn't much of a difference between this village and Crimson Village, except that Azure Village didn't have a stone temple. They passed the battle arenas and Myu saw a couple Pokémon fighting. He wanted to learn how to properly fight, but didn't want to seem rude by asking. Bella noticed him looking at the arenas and accurately guessed what he wanted.

"You want to battle, don't you?" she asked the Mew.

Myu nodded his head in response.

"Well, let's find you a partner to fight then. One your size." She looked around the village and spotted a Pikachu. "Hey, my friend would like to fight," she said as she ran over. "Would you be willing?"

"Sure. Where is your friend?" the Pikachu asked. Bella gestured to Myu. "Huh. Haven't seen his kind before. Should be an interesting fight."

"He's new to fighting," Bella said.

"Then I'll go easy on him." The Pikachu walked to one of the arenas and picked one side of the arena leaving the other for Myu. Myu took a stance to prepare for the fight while the Pikachu got down on all fours. "Since this is your first fight, I'll let you have the first move."

Myu used his memory to cycle through the moves he knew to decide on what would be a good opening move. He placed his paws at his side and charged up an Aura Sphere, then fired it at the Pikachu. The Electric Mouse Pokémon rolled to the side to avoid it and charged at the Mew with a Quick Attack. Halfway to his target, the Aura Sphere struck the Pikachu in the back and sent him skidding across the ground. The Pikachu got back up, amazed at the move.

"Was that Aura Sphere?" he asked. Myu nodded, and the Pikachu started to realize that this guy wasn't a complete amateur like he had originally thought. _Okay, so he's got a move that never misses, which is bad. I'm going to have to find a work around._ The Pikachu took off with another Quick Attack, this time going around the Mew in an attempt to confuse him. Myu waited for the Pikachu to make its move and it came in a Thunderbolt. Myu shot his hands in front of him and put up a Barrier to block the attack. The Thunderbolt struck and ricocheted up.

 _He's got a defensive move. That's just as bad. If I keep firing off Thunderbolts, he'll just block them, so I have to get up close if I want to have a chance._ The Pikachu took off again and used a Quick Attack to strike the Mew, hoping to catch him off guard. To his surprise, the Mew leapt up and over, dodging the attack. Myu landed on his feet, turned around and fired off an Aura Sphere. The Pikachu knew dodging was useless, so he fired a Thunderbolt at the Aura Sphere to hopefully stop it. The two attacks collided and set off an explosion. The Pikachu took advantage of the smoke and charged at the Mew with a Quick Attack, which struck the Mew square in the chest and sent him backward.

Myu stumbled around from the attack but managed to recover. He had to admit that was smart of the Pikachu. Myu retaliated by launching another Aura Sphere. The Pikachu saw the attack coming and ran away using Quick Attack. Myu was puzzled by this tactic, until the Pikachu started running at him. The Electric Mouse was hoping that the Aura Sphere would strike Myu and end this. Just before he could ram into the Mew, he leapt over him, landing behind Myu. Myu casually stepped to the side and avoided his own attack. The Pikachu, not expecting that, was struck by the Aura Sphere and sent flying.

The Pikachu stood back up after he fell down, still shaking from the unexpected move. "I'll admit, you're good. But you're still not better than me!" The Pikachu concentrated on his tail and readied an Iron Tail. As he ran at Myu, the Mew was thinking about what was going on, his mind moving fast. So far, he only knew three moves; Aura Sphere, Barrier, and Psychic, and his strategies were mostly ones he had seen elsewhere. While they proved effective, his main disadvantage in this fight was a lack of experience, something this Pikachu had a lot of. He was adapting to the Aura Sphere, figuring out ways to overcome the never-miss accuracy of the move. Myu had only two real battles to draw upon; his battle with Shadow Don, which he mostly just oversaw, and his fight with the Croconaw, which wasn't really much. He supposed that if he wanted to win, he needed to use all three of his own moves.

The Pikachu was getting really close now, so Myu stuck out his paw and concentrated, focusing on the Pikachu with Psychic. The Electric Mouse Pokémon was stopped mid-stride, his Iron Tail vanishing with his lapse in concentration. Myu lifted the Pikachu a few inches into the air before slamming him back down, hard. He wasn't really trying to hurt the Pikachu, not a great deal at least, just enough to knock him out. The Pikachu got up though, and thought of a way to overcome that move.

 _That was Psychic. A really powerful one too. How am I supposed to beat that?_ He remembered something he had learned a while back about Psychics and their powers. Most of them need to see the target in order to hit it. He got a plan in mind, and shot off again with a Quick Attack. This time he was zigzagging to prevent the Mew from locking onto him with Psychic. Myu, however, was anticipating the Pikachu's tactic and thought of a way to counter that. Just before the Pikachu could strike, Myu focused his Psychic on the ground, propelling him away from it as he leapt which sent him high into the air. As he flew, he charged up and fired an Aura Sphere at the stunned Pikachu, who was too distracted to notice the incoming attack. It struck, and the Pikachu was knocked out.

Myu didn't think to stop his fall as he mentally celebrated his victory so he slammed into the ground. Bella ran over to make sure he was alright.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine," Myu said, sitting up. "Is the Pikachu?"

As if to answer the question, the Pikachu pushed himself up. "Wow! You're better than I thought, for a rookie," he said. "But don't think this means you could beat me. I was going easy on you with only three moves. Next time, I'll be using all six to take you down."

"I look forward to our next fight, but I'm still going to win," Myu said back.

"We'll see about that." The Pikachu dusted his fur off and walked away.

"You were pretty good, Myu. Your first real fight and you won against a more experienced foe, no less," Bella complimented.

"Thank you."

* * *

As night fell, Don offered to let them stay in a spare room in his hut. Zeni rolled out the sleeping bags while Mimi got out a few Poffins for them to eat.

"Hey Myu. I heard about your fight earlier today," Lykos said.

"Oh, really?" the Mew asked.

"Everyone's heard of it. A newcomer beat one of the fastest Pokémon here," Ryu commented.

"Although I'm sure he could have done better, from what I've heard," Zeni said.

"It was my first fight," Myu said.

"Well then, perhaps we should train you how to fight," Zeni said. "I happen to know a lot of tactics that would suit someone like you."

"And I can teach you how to fight!" Lykos interjected. "I've always wanted to train someone!"

"I can help in that regard too," Ryu added.

"If he is willing to be taught," Bella said.

"I would be honored to learn. I'm sure I have a great deal to learn about Pokémon battles," Myu said.

"Great! We'll start tomorrow!" Lykos said, bouncing up and down.

Myu was glad to have them along and was eager to begin.

"You know, if we're going to all move forward, we need to give our group a name," Mimi suggested.

"But what name?" Lykos asked.

"How about…Explorers," Zeni suggested.

"Too dull," Myu said.

"Blue team!" Lykos said. "Since we're all blue."

"Not me," Mimi the Buneary said. Lykos pouted.

"I've got one," Myu said. "Team Orion."

"Why that name?" Zeni asked.

"Orion is the name of a hunter and an explorer. Since we're exploring, I thought it would be a good fit."

"I like it," Bella said.

"Me too!" Lykos said.

"Me too," Mimi echoed.

"I'm good with it," Zeni added.

"I'll go along with it," Ryu said.

"Then we're Team Orion," Myu said. "And tomorrow, we continue on to Air City."

"Yeah!"

 **End of Chapter 5**


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